


Gone Native

by Door



Category: Stargate Atlantis, Stargate Atlantis: Legacy Series - Various Authors, Stargate SG-1
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-27
Updated: 2016-03-27
Packaged: 2018-05-29 11:39:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,751
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6373264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Door/pseuds/Door
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>He wasn’t an idiot. He heard what people said about him, that he’d “gone native.” It happened more while he was in Stargate Command than in the Pegasus, although Major Lorne had informed him in the past about new arrivals who were surprised to find their commanding officer in an Earth-made uniform and not in something closer to what the Athosians wear.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>His favourite sleep pants were Athosian-made, as it happened. They were extremely comfortable.</i>
</p>
<p>John Sheppard returns to Atlantis after a short trip to Earth.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Gone Native

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place some years after the end of the Legacy series, though you really don't need to have read them to understand this. 
> 
> Hugs to [adamgurri](http://archiveofourown.org/users/adamgurri) for the beta and also for the decade you've spent letting me babble at you about SGA.

He shared the elevator with Vala Mal Doran. She was wearing civvies and humming to herself along with the Beyoncé which was presumably pumping through her earbuds. John didn’t keep up with music trends, but enough of his marines did that he wasn’t completely cut off. He knew Beyoncé when it was hummed off-key in an elevator next to him.

Vala glanced over, apparently realizing for the first time who was next to her. She pulled out her earbuds and grinned at him. “Colonel! We don’t often get to see you in this corner of the universe.”

He nodded. “Ms. Mal Doran.”

“Vala, please. How long are you here?”

“Headed back this morning, actually. Just have one final meeting with the General before I go.” Their energy situation was better than it had been when they’d first set off for Atlantis--dialing the Pegasus was no longer a ZPM-depleting task--but they still preferred to limit passages between the galaxies to the _Daedalus_ or the _Hammond,_ whichever of the ships was in rotation. John’s trip was a last minute-affair, so he’d gated in. The Atlantis medbay was running low on a few things following an unexpected viral outbreak in an ally civilization, so they were using the opportunity his trip provided to send back emergency supplies. He was also bringing a few personal necessities: beer, popcorn, and a stack of action figures.

“Good trip?” She asked.

John thought for a minute. “Yeah. I guess...yeah.”

The elevator went silent, only Beyoncé’s tiny voice singing from the earbuds. Silence went against everything John knew about Vala, so he glanced over at her. She was smirking knowingly.

“What?” He asked, suspicious.

She shook her head. “Nothing. That’s an interesting souvenir.” She poked at the box sticking out of the pack John had put at his feet. The distinctive Star Wars logo was visible on the corner.

“For my kid,” John nodded, and he couldn’t help his smile. “Hey, Vala,” he started. She raised her brows in question. “This is your home now, right?”

“Hm-mm,” she hummed, absently twirling the earbud cord around her finger.

“You ever regret it?” Making the choice, he meant. Leaving behind the worlds and life she’d known to throw her lot in with Earth. To live there, marry there, make a life there.

“No,” Vala said, without hesitation. “It’s a _little_ less exciting than my old life,” she conceded, “but not by much. And besides, there are other advantages.” She waggled the hand with the glinting black diamond ring on it, and John chuckled. She’d leave it behind when she next went through the gate, but dressed as she was in yoga pants and an oversized pink sweatshirt, large portable coffee mug in hand, she looked just like any other Colorado Springs resident running errands on a Thursday morning.

They reached level 18 and the elevator doors opened. The sight of Dr. Jackson, slumped half-asleep against a wall greeted them and Vala visibly brightened. “Good morning!”

Jackson startled awake. “Hi? Yes. Oh, thank god,” he said, making a beeline for the coffee Vala held. He took a healthy sip, groaned, and then focused on Vala. “You’re the best.”

“I know,” she said, leaning in for a quick kiss and then patting his cheek affectionately. Jackson reeled her in to kiss her again, nodded, then turned away, trundling down the hall in the direction of his lab. He'd probably never even registered John’s presence.

Vala turned back toward him. “Safe travels home, Colonel,” she said, then followed her husband, humming once again to herself.

_Home,_ John thought.

 

He wasn’t an idiot. He heard what people said about him, that he’d “gone native.” It happened more while he was in Stargate Command than in the Pegasus, although Major Lorne had informed him in the past about new arrivals who were surprised to find their commanding officer in an Earth-made uniform and not in something closer to what the Athosians wear.

His favourite sleep pants were Athosian-made, as it happened. They were extremely comfortable.

He pressed the button for level 27 and continued the rest of the way down to the general’s office. He was greeted by the general’s assistant, who offered him coffee and the manifest of items he was taking back to Pegasus with him to check over and confirm. He did so, noting that someone had taken the time to list each individual action figure. The list was missing the one he had in his bag, which he’d grabbed at a Target the night before, so he scrawled that in at the bottom and handed it back over.

The assistant, who’d introduced herself as Shruti, smiled at the addition. “An important last-minute acquisition?”

“Extremely important,” John confirmed.

The general’s door opened, and John and Shruti both rose to greet her.

“Colonel Sheppard,” Sam said warmly.

“General Carter,” John said, saluting sharply before stepping forward to take her offered hand.

“I was sorry to miss you when you came in. Your stay was productive, I hope?”

“I did what I came to do,” John confirmed, and Sam smiled.

“That’s good to hear.” She gestured into her office. “Sit with me a moment?”

They settled into her office, and John took in the decor. He recognized a lot of photos from when they’d been in her office on Atlantis--General O’Neill fishing by a small cabin, her father in his dress uniform, her niece Cassie with her arms slung around a big dog, several snapshots of the SG teams she’d served with over the years, Teal’c smiling calmly in each one--but there was also a framed painting. Lantea, John realized, from off the East Pier. He recognized it as Lorne’s work.

“How is she?” Sam asked, and John knew she meant the city.

They chatted about Atlantis, the newest improvements made to the 302s, the standoff Rodney McKay was currently embroiled in with the botany department for reasons no one could actually recall. John realized it was the most at ease he’d felt since he’d arrived 10 days before. Eventually, their conversation was halted by Shruti knocking on the door.

“They’re ready to dial out, ma’am.”

“All set?” Sam asked, and John grinned.

“Let’s go.”

There were a few people gathered at the base of the ramp in the gate room, two new marines and an archaeologist who’d been on extended leave. John greeted the archaeologist and introduced himself to the marines. One of the women had a wide-eyed look John recognized.

“First time through the gate?” He asked her.

“Yes, sir. My previous posting was aboard the _Hammond._ ”

“Don’t worry, Sergeant. It hurts a bunch, but it’s a whole lot faster.” With a reassuring smile, he turned away.

“You told me it didn’t hurt,” he heard hissed behind him.

“It doesn’t,” the other marine responded, sounding bored.

A minute later, the gate was dialing. John glanced around the cavernous room, idly watching as the lights from the gate reflected on the plain concrete walls. His gaze snapped forward as the eighth chevron locked and the room was flooded with bright blue.

“Safe travels,” General Carter’s voice came over the P.A. John spun on his heel to give her a thumbs-up, and watched her answering grin through the control room glass. Then he was up the ramp and through the gate, whipped through the wormhole--a feeling he could neither describe nor thought he'd ever tire of--and stepping into the bright, beautiful central tower in Atlantis.

He felt the tension in his chest loosen for the first time in days. He glanced up and found Mr. Woolsey looking down on him from his office. John nodded, and Woolsey lifted the mug in his hand in a small salute. That informal check-in complete, John scanned the rest of the room and found the face he’d been longing to see.

Teyla walked down the stairs towards him, a welcoming smile on her face. “John,” she said, reaching out her hands.

John took them, then leaned down to touch his forehead to hers, an Athosian greeting. “Hi,” he murmured, when they were close. “I missed you.”

“And I, you,” she replied, breathing deeply. “Did you complete your mission?”

“My mission?” He asked wryly, straightening but not releasing her hands. “Yeah, I did. Mostly.”

“Mostly?”

“I’ll explain later. Where’s--?” He heard a distant shout, and Teyla’s expression turned amused.

“Approaching rapidly.”

“DAD!” Torren raced in through a side passage, nearly taking out a medical tech who was doing inventory on their new supplies. “Sorrysorrysorry,” he said, waving his hands in apology before launching himself at John.

John dropped Teyla’s hands and stepped back, braced for the impact. Soon he had his arms full of 8-year-old boy, and he felt his face split into a wide, delighted smile. “Hey!” He lifted Torren up--a task which got more difficult with each year--and spun him in a quick circle.

“Daddaddad you’re not gonna believe it I was sparring with Ronon and I got a hit! I did, Dad! Can you come, can I show you??”

John looked towards the passage from whence Torren had emerged and found Ronon leaning in the entrance. John raised a brow, and Ronon shrugged. “It happened,” he said.

“That’s great, buddy! All the practise is paying off, huh?” He reluctantly loosened his grip on the kid so he could slide down and John could get a look at him. A little over a week with no contact--plus the 2 weeks before when Torren had been on New Athos with his father and half siblings--had felt like a year. “Did you get taller?”

Torren looked immediately to Teyla. “Did I, Mom?”

Teyla looked at her son carefully, then laid her hand on his shoulder and stepped into their small circle. “I believe you did.”

Torren grinned at John. “I did!” He pressed in to wrap his arms around John’s torso again. “I missed you,” he said into the fabric of John’s shirt.

“Me too,” John gripped him around the shoulders for a minute. He wouldn’t get long, he knew. The excitement of the reunion would ebb and Torren would remember his recent decision that it wasn’t cool to hug his parents in public. “Hey, I’ve got something to show you,” he said, disentangling himself enough to drop the pack he was still carrying.

Torren quickly noticed the box. “Is that--!”

“Maaaaaybe,” John drawled. “Let’s see.” He unzipped the bag and pulled the box out.

“It’s _Rey!”_ Torren exclaimed. “Mom, look, it’s Rey! And look, look, she’s got BB-8 and her staff and a _lightsaber!_ Ronon, look!”

Ronon had strolled over to check it out. “Whoa,” he said, managing to sound both impressed and completely uninterested, a feat unique to him.

Teyla paused in her admiration of the toy to shoot John a chiding look.

“Don’t worry,” he said, “I brought enough for his friends.”

“Oh, good,” Teyla said, rolling her eyes.

“Can we watch the movie again tonight?” Torren asked.

“‘Course, buddy,” John said, running his hand through his son’s curls.

“ _Awesome,”_ Torren said, “I want to open this right now.”

“In your room, please,” Teyla said. Torren’s answer was lost in his hurry away from them. She shot John a mild look as soon as her son was out of sight. “We have watched that movie every day since Kannan brought him over from New Athos. I have seen it six times this week, John.”

“So have I,” Ronon rumbled.

John threw his arm around Teyla’s shoulders. “Well, _I_ haven’t.”

 

* * *

Much later, after Star Wars had been viewed, popcorn had been consumed, and Torren had passed out, John stood on the small balcony outside his quarters. Their new planet was much colder than Lantea had been, particularly at night, but he found the comforting view of the city’s lights distracted him from the cold. He’d had a short debrief with Woolsey, a longer meeting with Lorne, and an entertaining family dinner in the mess, during which Rodney had amused everyone but Dr. Zelenka when his rant about the latest perceived slight from the botany labs had resulted in his drink spilling all over Radek’s meal.

“This is the last time I eat at a table with that _prdel_ ,” Radek hissed, poking at a beer-soaked bread roll on his plate after Dr. Keller had convinced Rodney that _yes,_ you _should_ get up and get Radek a towel. This, for some reason, turned Torren’s chuckles into howls of laughter, and soon everyone, Radek included, was laughing too.

“What? What’s funny??” Rodney demanded when he’d returned with the towel.

“You, Rodney,” Jennifer told him, passing the towel to Radek.

“Oh,” Rodney said, digesting that. “Well, yes.”

The door slid open behind John. “Was it so warm on Earth that you missed standing outside in the snow?” Teyla asked, stepping out and handing John his coat.

“Maybe,” he said. She was right, it had started to snow. He shrugged into the coat, then put his hand out towards her. She stepped in, pressing up against him so she was inside of the coat, too. “Did he make it to bed?”

Teyla shook her head, the motion rubbing against John’s chest. “He is still asleep on the sofa.”

“I’ll move him,” John said. “In a minute.”

The minute stretched into three, the two of them standing outside in the quiet.

“What is it you were going to tell me earlier?” Teyla finally asked. “When you said ‘mostly.’”

“Oh, yeah. So, I did everything Dave wanted, signed on all the dotted lines. My brother’s company is good and sold, and my part with it.”

“You don’t regret it?”

“No, of course not. I didn’t even really know any of it was mine. I mean, I guess I knew. I just never thought about it. So that’s that.”

“But?” Teyla prodded him, when he let the silence stretch.

“I told him I didn’t want the money--what would I do with it? It’s not like I’ll use it here. And Teyla, I want to be here.” He looked down at her.

She looked up. “I know you do.”

“But Dave wouldn’t let it go. Stubborn.”

“Oh, _he_ is stubborn, is he.”

He glanced down. “Yes, alright,” John said wryly. “Anyway, he agreed to leave it alone if I let him set up a trust. That’s a--a place where you put money, and it sits and no one can touch it. It’s for Torren.”

Teyla pulled back. “What? What would Torren need of it?”

“Well, I thought--what if someday down the line, he decides he wants to see Earth? What if he wants to go to college, be a scientist? He spends half his time surrounded by them, after all.”

Teyla bristled. “Torren is Athosian.”

“Yeah, well, so is Jinto.” Jinto, Hallings’ son, had started out working in Radek’s lab, and the scientist had been so impressed that he’d arranged for Jinto to attend university on Earth. He was currently pursuing a Ph.D. “And Torren is your son, Teyla Who Walks Through Gates. He doesn’t just belong on New Athos.”

Teyla said something so quietly that John ducked his head. “What?”

“And yours. Torren is also yours.”

John swallowed. “Yeah.” He looked up, for a moment, letting the cold wind sting at his eyes. “Anyway, I don’t need it. My home is this, now. Pegasus, Atlantis, you. But if Torren ever wants to see Earth, the money is there for him.”

“Alright. Yes.”

“Yeah?” John asked.

“I have said yes,” Teyla said shortly, but after a moment she leaned up and pressed her lips to John’s. “Your face is frozen.”

“So is yours,” John said, but he leaned in to kiss her again anyway. It had been days and days.

“I do not like the idea of my son being in a different galaxy,” Teyla said, “but--”

“Neither do I,” John interjected.

“ _But_ I will allow that the decision must be Torren’s to make. Now. _You_ must put your son to bed.”

“Oh, I must, must I?”

“Yes. John, it is _snowing,”_ she said in exasperation.

He laughed. “Okay, okay.”

Later, after he’d tucked Torren into his bed, still gripping his Rey toy in one hand, John pulled on his very comfortable Athosian sleep pants and climbed into his own bed.

“How does it feel?” Teyla asked softly, beside him in the dark.

“How does what feel?”

“Going native,” she replied, a smile in her voice.

John pulled her close. “Perfect.”

**Author's Note:**

> Teal'c stockpiled Star Wars toys for months.


End file.
